


Training Day

by amandapanda425



Category: Charmed (TV 2018)
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-09
Updated: 2020-08-09
Packaged: 2021-03-05 23:47:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,236
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25793866
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/amandapanda425/pseuds/amandapanda425
Summary: Post episode 1x04, Harry works with each of the girls to expand their powers.
Comments: 2
Kudos: 11





	Training Day

**Author's Note:**

> I decided to do another one based on today's prompt. I'm not as happy with this one as I was with yesterday's story. Let me know what you think!

It had only been a few hours since the Charmed Ones had captured the Harbinger of Hell when they were awakened by pounding on each of their bedroom doors.

“Time for training, ladies. I expect each of you in the attic in ten minutes to start today’s drills. The first person that says anything unpleasant will get a swift kick in the butt,” Harry shouted at them, far too chipper for the early morning.

Ten minutes later, the sisters were standing in front of Harry, scowls on their faces.

“Harry, it’s 5 a.m. Don’t we deserve to sleep in for at least one day?” Maggie whined.

“No, we do not. Although you ladies did fantastic yesterday, you also got extremely lucky,” Harry said. “Had your mother not had that spell written out for this precise situation, you risked releasing the Harbinger of Hell onto the streets of Hilltowne. We cannot guarantee your mother had a prophecy for every demon you will encounter. Mel, you had no plan when you took the Harbinger from the attic. That cannot happen again. Now, I’ll be spending some time with each of you individually to work on honing your powers. Until then, we’ll start the day off with a nice mile-long jog.”

“You cannot be serious about this. This is absurd,” Mel said, getting ready to head back to her room.

“I am serious. It is important you stay in peak physical condition. Now, let’s get to it, ladies,” Harry said. “Last one home gets to go first with their individual session.”

The sisters continued to grumble as they ran through campus with Harry leading the way.

* * *

Later that afternoon, Mel got to start her one-on-one session with Harry, since she was the last one to return home.

“Alright, white man. What wisdom do you have to condescendingly impart on me today?” Mel asked, rolling her eyes.

“Today, we are going to work on your impulse control and most importantly, your patience,” Harry said, choosing to ignore Mel’s poor attitude. “You are doing well with mastering the intricacies of your power, so it’s time to start working on expanding your spellwork and potions. Your major problem is that you act before you think. Again, I cannot express enough how lucky we got with the Harbinger.”

“That wasn’t luck. That was skill. And Mom’s spell work…” Mel interrupted.

“Again, we cannot rely on Marisol having crafted the perfect spell for every demon encounter you may have. Now, for the next four days, we’re going to be working on a healing potion…”

“Four days for one potion? And why do I need a healing potion when you have healing powers?”

“Because there may come a time when I am not around and you will need to heal yourself or your sisters. This potion takes four days to brew. Every step of it requires careful attention to detail and precision. You cannot cut corners with this potion. If even a step is missed, the entire potion will combust and you will have to start over.”

“Well, it sounds like I should probably use a different potion then, if this one is so sensitive.”

“This is also the most highly-effective healing potion you will find in the Book of Shadows. It is one that should be in every witch’s arsenal. Now, let’s get to it. Start pulling the ingredients from your mother’s cabinets and we’ll begin.”

By that evening, Mel had started the potion over five times and was about ready to set Harry on fire along with the potion.

“What? What could I possibly have done wrong now?” Mel said, as the potion combusted for a sixth time.

“You aren’t counting the stirs correctly. It takes twelve stirs in a clockwise motion, then fourteen counter-clockwise. You’re getting impatient and the potion is suffering as a result. Now, take a deep breath. Focus. Once you get past this step, it must brew for precisely 39 hours before we move on to the next step, so you will get a break for today.”

“Can’t I just use magic to stir it instead of doing it by hand?”

“How did that work out for you three times ago when you tried using magic instead of stirring by hand?”

Mel glared at Harry as she gathered the ingredients once more. As she prepared to start stirring the potion once more, she felt Harry’s hand close over her own.

“Take a deep breath. Remember, it is twelve stirs clockwise, fourteen counter-clockwise. If you focus on how irritated you are at this moment, you will lose count again and we’ll be back to square one.”

Mel closed her eyes, breathed in, and counted to twelve. So far, the potion had not exploded. She looked to Harry, who smiled and nodded for her to continue. She switched direction, stirred fourteen more times and stopped. For the first time, the potion turned a pearly white instead of exploding in her face.

“Very well done. Now, set an alarm for 39 hours from now. That is when you must add the rest of the ingredients and say the incantation. After that, it must rest for another 15 hours and then it will be ready to go. You did well today, Mel. When you slow down and focus on the magic, you are capable of great things,” Harry told her.

“Thank you, Harry. I’m sorry I was a pain in the ass today. Now, if you don’t mind, I want to be anywhere other than this attic,” Mel said.

“Understood. You go check on Neko. I’m sure she could use your comfort after everything that happened with Trip.”

* * *

After dinner, Macy met Harry in the attic for her individual training session.

“Alright, Harry. Mel was nearly in tears after her session with you, so do your worst,” Macy said, slightly nervous for what was in store.

“It was not nearly that bad,” Harry said, rolling his eyes. “I want you to work on your precision. You’re doing well with being able to move most objects, but we’re going to expand to smaller, more delicate movements. Think of it like a child learning how to master movement. We start with gross motor skills, like walking, throwing, and catching. Then we move on to fine motor skills. I want you to take off an entire three-piece suit, untying the tie, removing the pocket square, unbuttoning all of the buttons, and then put it back on.”

Macy paused and looked at Harry, dressed in his standard three-piece suit. She tilted her head to the side and raised an eyebrow.

“Harry, not that I want to question your teaching methods, but I don’t know how comfortable I am with the thought of undressing you,” Macy said, with a nervous giggle.

“What? Oh good heavens, no,” Harry said with a blush on his face. He stepped to the side and revealed a mannequin with one of his suits dressed on it. “I meant to take it off this mannequin and then put it back on the mannequin. I would never, I mean, that would be highly inappropriate.” Harry continued to nervously sputter for a few more seconds.

“Harry, it’s okay. That makes more sense and it’s a really good exercise. I just didn’t see the mannequin behind you,” Macy said, trying to put Harry out of misery.

“Well, yes. Let’s just get started, shall we?” Harry said, still beet red.

Two hours and a few dozen popped buttons later, Macy was able to successfully remove the suit from the mannequin and redress it.

“Excellent work, Macy. You even got close to a true Windsor knot with the tie. You seem to be catching on very quickly. I’ll have to come up with a more challenging activity for next time,” Harry said, beaming with pride at Macy’s progress.

“Well, I had a good teacher, Harry. I know we haven’t been the best pupils, but we do appreciate all your hard work,” Macy said, putting her hand on Harry’s shoulder.

“Yes, well. I would hardly be doing my duty as your Whitelighter if I didn’t challenge you,” Harry said. “That’s enough for tonight. Keep practicing and we’ll pick up more next time.”

* * *

The next afternoon, Maggie got a text from Harry telling her to meet him at the dining hall near the Kappa house. Maggie heard the stories from Mel and Macy, so she was nervous about what to expect. Harry was sitting in the lobby and waved her over.

“Harry, what are we doing here? There’s tons of Kappas all over the place. Couldn’t we go somewhere I won’t run into someone I know?” Maggie said, glancing around nervously hoping she wouldn’t run into Lucy or even worse, Parker.

“That is precisely why we came here. You need to be able to focus your powers even in situations where outside factors are distracting you. So, let’s grab some lunch and I’ll explain to you your next exercise.”

Maggie grabbed a salad and met Harry at a table in the center of the dining area.

“But what if someone asks why I’m in a dining hall with the head of the Women’s Studies department? Won’t that look weird?”

“Not that anyone will think twice of it, but we can simply say I’m an old friend of your mother’s and I wanted to see how you are doing with her death. We could also say I’m trying to recruit you to declare your major as Women’s Studies, so you can follow in your mother’s footsteps,” Harry said.

“Okay, that might actually work. How did you come up with that so quickly?” Maggie asked.

“It’s not entirely a lie. I had great admiration for your mother. I do care how you are doing with her death. I’d also love to see you in the Women’s Studies department. You are quite insightful and would bring a perspective that is much different from your peers.”

“I guess I’ve never really thought about it. That was always mom and Mel’s thing. I never felt like I would have belonged,” Maggie said, moving her fork around her salad.

“Well, there’s absolutely no pressure. But if you did decide to pursue the field, you would be welcomed with open arms,” Harry said, looking thoughtfully at Maggie. “Now, for your exercise. You’re doing well with tuning out the thoughts of others in a crowded place. You’re also doing well with reading thoughts when you’re able to physically touch someone. However, you are not always going to be able to come into such close proximity. I want you to read the thoughts of that young woman sitting at the table directly behind me, without touching her.”

“But Harry, I’ve barely been able to tune out everyone’s thoughts. Even now, it’s like a frat party in my head with all the muffled noise.”

“You simply need to focus. Just look over my shoulder at her. Let the image of everyone else fall away until the only person in the room is her. Take a deep breath and think of no one other than her.”

Maggie braced herself. She was still struggling to tune out the thoughts of the crowded cafeteria. She zeroed in on the young blonde and tried to imagine herself standing next to her. She imagined her hand on the woman’s arm and heard a faint voice say, “I shouldn’t have had so much to drink last night. I’m going to bomb this chem test.”

Maggie shook herself back to focus and beamed. “Harry! I think I did it! She’s hungover and worried about a chemistry test! It sounded like she was on the other side of the room and whispering, but I could hear her!”

“Excellent work, Maggie. I must say, I’m very impressed with how quickly you were able to focus on her thoughts. Mel spent the better part of a day working on her potion and it took Macy over two hours to complete her task. You are a very quick study,” Harry said, with a look of paternal pride on his face.

Maggie moved her head from side to side, as if she were doing a slight happy dance. She had been praised for a lot of things in her life. Her bubbly personality. Her impeccable fashion sense. But few people had praised her for her mind. Harry proceeded to test Maggie by picking out random people for Maggie to read their thoughts while they finished their lunch.

* * *

That evening, Harry walked into the manor after teaching his last class. The Charmed Ones met him at the door.

“What is going on?” Harry asked, eying the ladies suspiciously.

“As thanks for your patience and all the magnificent breakfasts, we decided to cook dinner for you tonight,” Maggie said, taking Harry’s coat. “You deserve a night to relax and we thought we could have a Vera-Vaughn-Greenwood family night.”

Harry looked down with a soft smile on his face. “This is wholly unnecessary, ladies, but much appreciated. What are we having?”

“Macy found a recipe for bangers and mash online, so we decided to try that tonight,” Mel said. Then we figured we could play some board games after dinner.”

Harry sat down at the table, looked at his charges, and thought to himself how grateful he was to be appointed their whitelighter. These young women were quickly becoming the family he had longed for .


End file.
